From Ritual To Romance

Acknowledged by T. S. Eliot as crucial to understanding The Waste LandJessie Westons book has continued to attract readers interested in ancientreligion myth an... » 

Acknowledged by T. S. Eliot as crucial to understanding The Waste LandJessie Westons book has continued to attract readers interested in ancientreligion myth and especially Arthurian legend. Weston examines the saga ofthe Grail which in many versions begins when the wounded king of a famishedland sees a procession of objects including a bleeding lance and a bejewelledcup. She maintains that all versions defy uniform applications of Celtic andChristian interpretations and explores the legends Gnostic roots. Drawingfrom J. G. Frazer who studied ancient nature cults that associated thephysical condition of the king with the productivity of the land Westonconsiders how the legend of the Grail related to fertility rites with thelance and the cup serving as sexual symbols. She traces its origins to aGnostic text that served as a link between ancient vegetation cults and theCelts and Christians who embellished the story. Conceiving of the Grail saga asa literary outgrowth of ancient ritual she seeks a Gnostic Christianinterpretation that unites the quest for fertility with the striving formystical oneness with God. «